Recycling and Sustainability: Our Commitment and Plan

Recycling and Sustainability are central to how we manage waste across the area. Our immediate goal is to reach a 65% recycling percentage target by 2030, and to keep improving year on year thereafter. This sustainability page explains how our waste recycling strategy and sustainable recycling activities work together: from kerbside collections to local transfer stations, partnerships with charities, and a cleaner, low-carbon vehicle fleet. We believe a clear recycling target helps drive operational change and community participation.

Our boroughs' approach to waste separation emphasizes simple, consistent systems. Residents are asked to separate glass, paper and card, mixed plastics, cans, and food/organic waste at the kerbside. Food waste goes into dedicated containers for anaerobic digestion or composting, while garden waste is collected seasonally. The recycling & sustainability model we promote reduces contamination and increases the value of material captured for reprocessing.

We also rely on a network of local transfer stations that act as hubs for sorting and onward transport. These transfer facilities reduce journey times for collection vehicles, cut carbon emissions, and improve material quality by allowing preliminary sorting and consolidation. From bulky item drop-offs to dedicated textile banks, transfer stations are a practical element of our waste recycling programme. Efficient transfer logistics underpin our ability to meet the recycling percentage target.

Partnerships with charities and community groups amplify reuse and keep items out of the waste stream. We work with local reuse partners to redirect furniture, working appliances, and textiles to people in need, rather than sending them for disposal. Charity reuse partnerships also support repair cafes and circular-economy initiatives that extend product life and reduce demand for new goods. Where items cannot be reused, materials are separated for recycling through established routes.

Our recycling strategy includes targeted campaigns to boost recycling of specific material streams that local residents generate in significant volumes: paper and cardboard from home deliveries, plastic packaging from online shopping, glass from households, and food waste from kitchens. Boroughs that prioritize separate food waste collections typically achieve higher organic diversion rates. We tailor collections — such as weekly food waste and fortnightly dry recycling — to local needs to maximize capture and minimize contamination.

To support households and businesses, we maintain clear signage, multilingual materials, and community outreach on correct sorting. Examples of recycling activity across the area include:

• Kerbside collections for mixed dry recycling (paper, card, cans and selected plastics)
• Separate food/organic waste collection for composting or anaerobic digestion
• Seasonal garden waste rounds and bulky-item pickups for reuse assessment
• Textile banks and electrical waste take-back at transfer stations

Investment in infrastructure is central to our sustainable recycling objectives. Local transfer stations are being upgraded with better sorting lines and space for charity partners to inspect and recover reusable items. These improvements reduce contamination, raise recycling quality, and support higher recovery rates when material is sent to reprocessors. Quality matters as much as quantity when moving towards an effective waste recycling and sustainability system.

We are rolling out a low-carbon van fleet to cut emissions from collection rounds. Electric and hybrid collection vehicles are increasingly replacing older diesel vans for local reuse collections and charity redistribution, while route optimisation software reduces mileage across the whole service. By shifting to low-emission delivery and pick-up vehicles, we reduce the carbon intensity of our recycling operations and make the recycling strategy truly sustainable.

Our long-term plan balances practical collection services with behaviour change: public information campaigns, school education programmes, and incentives for businesses that adopt better packaging and waste reduction measures. Everyone—residents, community groups, charities, and local businesses—has a role in achieving and exceeding our recycling percentage target. Together we can increase reuse, reduce residual waste, and move toward a resilient, low-carbon circular economy.